Getting Caught Up - Part 2

Okay, so that's out of the way. Now, on to the belated book review from last Friday. I finished reading Wen Spencer's ”Ukiah Oregon” series and enjoyed it very much. It does have some "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" type elements that I wasn't sure about at first, but the action certainly doesn't disappoint at all. It was a nice change of pace from some of the slower moving books I've read lately. And, there are already 4 books out in the series so you can enjoy yourself without having to wait for a sequel that is months or years away ('cuz you KNOW how I hate that!)

I also read Charlaine Harris's newest book, ”Grave Sight” Ms. Harris is the author of the acclaimed "Southern Vampire" series which I also enjoyed although it is a bit on the "romance genre" side of things for my normal taste. Her newest book features a woman, Harper Connelly, with an unusual talent - thanks to being struck by lightning as a child, she can find dead bodies and "see" how the person died. And she makes a living doing it. Of course, this also means she gets caught up in some unusual circumstances on occasion...such as the apparent murder-sucide of Monteen Hopkins and Dell Teague. But, are those deaths actually what they appear to be? That's what Harper is being paid to find out. Of course, not everyone will necessarily be thrilled with her answers. I really enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it as a fun read.

And lastly, I already posted about how much I enjoyed Linnea Sinclair's "Finders, Keepers" and Ms. Sinclair was nice enough to leave a comment here on the blog which just thrilled me to pieces! It also reminded me that she's got 2 books coming out in fairly short order that both look excellent: ”Gabriel's Ghost” and ”An Accidental Goddess.” I've added a link to her home page over in the links section of this blog so you can keep up with the latest and greatest. As soon as I can get my hands on either of these, I'll be sure to review them, but I already have a good feeling based on my past experience with "Finders, Keepers." And yes, Ms. Sinclair DID buy some jewelry from me (which thrilled me into even tinier pieces) but that sooo has nothing to do with this plug ;-) Good writing is good writing and deserves recognition. Especially since, in my totally inconsequential opinion, the whole sci-fi/fantasy genre is having its overall publishing budget eaten into by franchise books (Star Wars, TV series books), gaming books, etc. I much prefer originality in world-building, plotting, characterization and other elements...but maybe that's just me.

That's it for now. I did finish a couple of new pieces this weekend, but this entry is so long already that I'll wait to post those tomorrow.
KJ

P.S. Okay, one more thing. When Ryan was born, the spouse and I signed up for Netflix so we could get movies delivered to us at home because we figured new baby = severely reduced theater attendance. One of the things I like best about it is that it allows me to keep up with TV shows I've missed out on as well as movies and this last week, I discovered a really cool show called "Veronica Mars." I'd heard of it before and seen the ads, but had dismissed it as sort of a "Dawson's Creek/OC/Everwood" rip-off so I never checked it out. I couldn't have been more wrong. This show is smart, funny and has a great detective story/murder mystery running through it. It's kind of got a "Twin Peaks" feeling without being so in love with its own confusing bizarreness that it becomes a turn-off (hey, "Lost" producers...are you paying attention? Because you're SOOO headed down that whole "who killed Laura Palmer" "I don't care any more" slope). Anyway, I just thought I'd mention that you should check it out...and get Netflix, too, while you're at it. It’s WAAYYY more convenient than all those trips to the video store (plus, no late fees). Blockbuster? What’s that?